


Raise an Army

by perilpetrol



Category: DCU
Genre: Asexual Character, Bad Flirting, Bruce is v broody, Demiromantic Charecter, Everyone is done with Bruce's shit, Gen, Gotham is shit, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I'll try to write some more for this, Might not, Mild Blood, and she just met him, batfam, but - Freeform, even the main character, idk - Freeform, why????
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-28
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-10-12 00:15:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10477761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/perilpetrol/pseuds/perilpetrol
Summary: Gotham isn't getting better, crime and poverty are rising, villains are gaining more and more control.When Private investigator  Maya Marion enters the city and sees the state it's in, she realizes just how little Heros can fix what's broken here.Maya isn't a Hero, but she will do what it takes to help Gotham begin to repair itself.She will raise an army.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!  
> Me and my friendly neighborhood Tumblr queen @iiiiitschloe worked until 3 in the God damned morning to bring this masterpiece to life (she says hesitantly and sarcastically)  
> If you wanna reach me (I write mostly Undertale fics) My Tumblr is: http://howdoihumanpls.tumblr.com/  
> If you wanna reach this Bitch, (She's the one who writes all the DC fics in our friendship) her Tumblr is: https://iiiiitschloe.tumblr.com/  
> Come send us requests / give critiques/ scream memes in our general direction

Maya Marion didn’t expect to be on a train headed to Gotham that morning (or ever, for that matter), but the client who had given her the job had sounded almost in tears on the phone and as a Private Investigator with more than a single gram of compassion she couldn’t knowingly leave this woman without help.  
The client, Mrs. Helen Bayes, had lost contact with her daughter Miriam Bayes a few weeks ago, no emails, no phone calls, no communication of any kind. That in itself was particularly worrying as Helen explained to Maya.  
“Miriam has never failed to call me after work, she likes to let me know she got home safe.” What sent the poor soccer mom over the edge, however, was the ransom note she found stuffed in her mailbox two days ago with pictures of her daughter screaming in what seemed to be terror. The address was from Gotham, so that meant Maya had to get her ass on a train to the most violent city in the area to track down a kidnapper who was so demented as to send the images of a daughter in pain to her helpless mother.  
Needless to say, the day was starting out less than not-shittily.  
Maya glanced up from looking at her phone as the train doors opened, her first impression of Gotham being a drunk homeless man throwing up in a bin next to the bathrooms and teenagers sitting on the sides, watching people come and go, passing back and forth a bottle.  
I thought they were exaggerating about this place, she thought, but already it seems just as bad as people claim. Perhaps worse. As she walked through the station, she studied her surroundings. There was graffiti covering the walls, the most notable design being a flaring red version of the symbol she recognized from Batman’s suit. She shook her head. The vigilantes try so hard, and yet… Her thoughts trailed off as she visualized the screaming girl from her case file.  
It never seems to be enough. She was torn by her thoughts by an ominous scuffling behind her, the sound of a failed attempt at stealth. She turned around, only to be met by the sight of a young man wielding a switchblade. Her expression sharpened.  
“Your purse, and your jewelry. Give them to me,” he growled, clearly trying his best to sound malicious. Maya pursed her lips.  
“Oh, no thank you,” she replied. The young man was clearly taken back. He edged the blade towards her, the action almost seeming anxious.  
“Do it or I’ll have to hurt you,” he warned. She shook her head.  
“You really don’t have to do anything, if we’re being completely honest.” The man lunged towards her, something she had not only anticipated but counted on. She intercepted the motion, fluidly grabbing ahold of his wrist and twisting until the pressure built and he could no longer retain his grip on the blade. It fell to the ground with a clatter. Letting go of him, she swiftly collected the weapon, slipping it into her purse with a sigh of disappointment.  
“How did you…” he started.  
“Disarm you? Well, my dear, you weren’t even holding the knife correctly. You appear to be what, seventeen? What is a young man like you- who has much potential, I’m sure- doing trying to incorrectly rob the people exiting that station?” The young man shifted his weight in discomfort, crossing his arms defensively.  
“What’s it to you?” he snapped. Maya raised an eyebrow.  
“Well, considering that I am one of the people you had attempted to rob, I do feel like it has become my business.” She started walking away, stopping to look over at him “Why don’t you come with me and we can discuss your situation somewhere more private? And maybe get you some food as well,” She offered.  
“Um, not to sound rude, but why? I literally just tried to rob you and you’re taking me out for lunch. I’m just having some trouble following your logic here.” She shrugged.  
“Well, nobody is a thief without a reason, and I’m quite interested in hearing yours,” she answered. “Also, I would suggest you do come with me, because otherwise I have an obligation to call the authorities.” He looked as if he wanted to refuse, but he followed Maya anyway, walking beside her.  
“What is your meal preference, Mr….” she prompted him.  
“Alex. Alex Trenton. Well, there’s a pretty good burger place a few streets from here,” he suggested.  
“Then lead the way, Mr. Trenton.”  
***  
Maya watched as Alex scarfed down the bacon cheeseburger he had ordered as if someone would punish him for enjoying the meal. Maya herself was barely picking at her small caesar salad and side of fries, more interested in observing the youth seated opposite her then her food.  
“You can stop staring at me like that ya’ know. Like I’m gonna run away,” he muttered. She lifted an eyebrow at that.  
“I trust that you won’t, Mr. Trenton. That wasn’t why I was observing you.” He scowled down at his plate, confused.  
“Well, why are you staring at me? To be honest, nothing you do makes any sense lady, first you disarm me then you invite me to eat with you, you even ask me where I wanna go for lunch for God Sake! And now staring at me like I’m some sort of puzzle and it’s freaking me the fuck out!” His hands were shaking almost imperceptibly, but Maya noticed. She placed her hand over his and looked into his eyes.  
“Why, Alex?” She asked after several seconds of silence. “I just want to know what drove you to threatening a stranger with a knife, that’s why I brought you here.” He couldn’t force himself to meet her gaze.  
“I don’t really think you want my whole sob story so-”  
“Then you think wrong,” she stated. Her voice was resolute, her mind made up. He was surprised at her forceful tone.  
“Well…” 

***  
Maya’s heels clicked as she walked along the docks. She had traced the origin of the note to the industrial district of Gotham, where she had come in contact with a witness: the owner of a gun shop.  
“Um, a few days ago, right? I think there was a girl who looked a lot like that. Came in here really jumpy, that’s what I remember her for. Constantly looking over her shoulder like she was expecting something to suddenly be there. I asked her if she needed the police, and she didn’t hesitate to decline. Said she needed a gun and had a permit for one. I just recall her seeming really scared, there’s security footage if that will help you. Why do you ask about her, did you find a body?”  
The tapes had revealed that the client’s daughter had been there… and that she was now armed. Based off of the cold sweat she had been in (and the general aura of irrational fear), she was possibly under the influence of the notorious Scarecrow’s fear toxin. The timestamp on the footage was from the day after the client had found the ransom note, illustrating that Miriam had escaped from wherever she had been taken. With the toxin in her system, she wouldn’t have been able to get far, though being an escaped victim of a supervillain would explain her need for a weapon. I’m running from my kidnappers, Maya had thought. Where might I go? Somewhere familiar to me, somewhere I know has plenty of places to hide, but I can’t go where he’ll find me again. I’m too scared to go home or travel far, they might see me flee… Somewhere hidden, close, and familiar to me. Through digging a little deeper, she had found an abandoned cannery near the docks. It had closed down and been repurposed into a homeless shelter that Miriam had volunteered at for a period of time, but then had been closed due to lack of funding. According to some bloggers, it wasn’t frequented by the homeless after its closing to do “an overwhelming aroma of rotting fish”. It wasn’t much, but it was a possibility. As she approached the building, Maya realized her sources hadn’t been incorrect about the smell lingering in the air. The scene appeared to be deserted, but she noted several bullet holes gracing one of the walls. The moisture has caused visible mold to be growing in other similar nooks, including other bullet holes, but the ones in front of her lacked such growth. The fractured pieces of the concrete still littered the floor, indicating that not enough time had passed for them to have been swept or blown away. Suddenly, her attention was diverted from the floor to a noise behind her.  
“Miriam, if you’re here, I have not come to hurt you,” she announced. There was no reply, just silence. She walked cautiously in the direction of the noise, keeping in mind the possibility of a dangerous person being in hiding. Instead, she found a pale girl trying to conceal herself behind the broken crates. There were clear tear streaks across her dirty cheeks, and her dehydration was evident. Upon seeing Maya, she attempted to scream, but her throat would not let out more than a strangled cry. Her attempts to move were foiled by her weakness. The investigator called an ambulance to collect the victim lying in a nearly catatonic state before her. Once assured that help was on its way, Maya looked with pity at Miriam, who had been reduced to this by her state of terror. She dialed her client’s number.  
“Hello, Mrs. Bayes? I found your daughter. Yes, yes, she’s alive…”

**Author's Note:**

> AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA  
> -comment your opinion of this scream bellow


End file.
